Rick Reynolds Rick m reynolds

Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Thank you for visiting.


 Life can change in a flash, and that it has!  Rick's journey starts on August 14th with a trip to the family Dr. I met him at the Dr. office because he was going to go alone. I listened  to  him  tell  the Dr. he hadn't been  feeling  well for months since he had a virus in the late spring.  Dr. does an EKG and blood draw, says he will  call us in the morning.  Next morning,  Rick gets a call that he needs a red blood cell transfusion right away  and that he is anemic and we need to go to ER. St. Luke's  Meridian. Soo this is about 5:00 pm. Finished transfusion around 10:30 when  ER doctor comes in and tells us if we are lucky Rick needs a vitamin B12 shot....if not it's in the bone marrow. 


August 23rd@12:15 we go to Nampa  MSTI  to meet with Dr. Swerdloff. He says we need bone marrow biopsy  which we do on next morning @8. 


Friday August 24th we get phone call Rick has MDS.   


Monday, August 28th@10:15 red blood  cell transfusion  @ St.Luke's  downtown and again transfusion  @11:00am.


August 31st. Called Dr. Before leaving for this 3rd transfusion  because  site of Mondays transfusion  is hot, hard and slightly pink and Rick has fever of 101. Stop at pharmacy to pick up antibiotic on the way to transfusion. I had Rick take 1 of his antibiotic  before they start transfusion  on other arm because of soreness  in left arm. Rick also could not move either of his shoulders since August 17th. Nurse sees that Rick's arm is hot, hard and fever now of 102 and calls for PA. PA calls Rick's Dr. whom we have only just met, and he puts Rick on IV antibiotics after transfusion  is completed, we are  sent home.  


Fever still next morning which brings us to Friday September  1st. I call Dr's office again and say we need to do something , so they send orders to Nampa St. Luke's ER  for blood work and sonagram of left arm. We get to hospital  Rick's foot now hurting and swollen so he is in a  wheelchair and they call us in and put Rick up  on  the gurney and they say you are in a-fib, blood clot and infection in left arm . Now he is off to downtown  St. Luke's  by ambulance!  I get to the hospital  to hear that he has had a heart attack. We are admitted to the heart care floor not the oncology  floor!!! Things got quite messed up and complicated  because  of the Dr.s. involved  who really should  have moved Rick to the 4th floor. 


We leave hospital on September 6th go home and have appointment with Dr. Swerdloff on Thursday @12:45....infection gone MRI's ordered for Tuesday, September 12th and start chemo on Monday September 11th at 8:00 am.  


Spot on left leg hot, hard and pink develops on Saturday.  Call after hours # and they say to keep warm, moist compresses on leg. Sunday afternoon we are at St Luke's downtown ER. They do blood draw and sonagram of the left leg.   We are sent home. 


Monday morning  we go Dr. Office to start Rick's first chemo and are told his MDS has possibly progressed  into Leukemia.  He is taken by ambulance again to St. Luke's  downtown where we are now !!! 


August 12 - Meet new Dr. On Tuesday morning.  MRI's Tuesday late night 10pm to 12pm. Results  Wednesday  morning  are good and bone marrow  biopsy  ordered for Wednesday along with several other tests. Today 9 AM  heart problems, kidney  problems,  and deep vein blood clot in rt. arm  where pick was for chemo that  had to be removed. Tomorrow  we will have bone marrow  results and God willing start chemo for either MDS or Leukemia.  


Please all you angel's  out there pray for God's healing and strength to be within Rick as we begin the real fight! We love you all and know God's with us. We trust our Father in Heaven with all our being, God Bless and thank you all for the love we are feeling.